A Church in Trouble

I am by nature an optimist, which is as well as only for months after ordination, when I was 47 years old, I received an injury which eventually lead to a major change in my ability to walk, it also left me in constant pain. Anyway to add insult to injury, (pardon the pun) having been forced to retire on medical grounds, I found myself celebrating my 50 birthday then within a month I had the first of eight strokes. All changing me a little each time. But I remain upbeat at 51 years of age even though I cannot longer follow my great passions of walking and cycling. So you would think there was little that could get me down.

Well there is. This total dysfunctionality within God’s church, this ability to fall out over everything instead of loving and praying for each other. Why do we have to fear what the other person or persons will do next? We all have to acknowledge that we are each destroying God’s plan, we all have to understand that unless we stand by each other regardless of whether we agree with each other Satan wins. This is not to say that we compromise what we believe, but surely in love standing shoulder by shoulder we will find the truth. I am differently abled to the person I once was, or if you prefer in common parlance; I am ‘disabled’; now there are those in my own church the Church of England who would hold that I am like this because I am a great sinner, well yes I am. But I am also a human created in God’s image and God created us all to be ‘Good’ – not perfect.

Entrenched type Conflict has no place in God’s church, so shame on those who do not see and understand this. We have to move forwards together, instead of this petty childish behaviour that we see when some complain that yes I knew the law then I entered a same sex marriage but now it’s unfair that I cannot minister so I am leaving, don’t go! Stay! We love you, We need you! You must stay and be heard it may be that the Holy Spirit is speaking through you. Or maybe the Holy Spirit is speaking through the Bishop and in time you may hear, but if you leave how will this get sorted, but we still love you. And what about the silly complaints about what a woman bishop might do; or some saying it’s not fair that a woman bishop cannot do this or that. Heaven help us, literally.

I either walk using two sticks, or on a bad day have to use a wheel chair, now I cannot recall seeing a bishop recently in a wheelchair, with a guide-dog, or even an NSM bishop. I see a lot on the front of the Church Times running around playing cricket, and inside in fine robes meeting royalty. But I am not running around complaining, no, I am staying and praying for God to lead us through this unholy mess. But let us not forget He does answer us through each other, synod, PCC’s etc. the fact we do not like the response is part of our growth in faith should we choose to live and learn by that response. Amen